MFA Ukraine condemns ban on Mejlis in occupied Crimea

Friday, April 15, 2016 - 13:10 (EEST) Section: Latest news

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine expressed its strong protest against the so-called decision of the occupying prosecution office in the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea to suspend the activity of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars, the ministry said in a statement published on its website.
”This decision has become yet another step in the chain of crimes of the Russian occupying authorities against representatives of the Crimean Tatar people, indigenous people of Crimea. We consider it as a blatant violation of Russia`s commitments as an occupying power under international law, including under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination,” the statement reads.
The ministry notes that during the last two years, the Kremlin has turned the Ukrainian peninsula into the ”area of oppressions, intimidations and persecutions, massive violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms.”
”Against this backdrop, accusations of the Mejlis of the extremist activity look particular cynical,” the ministry says in its statement.  
It went on to say that despite firm condemnation by Ukraine and other democratic states of the Russian aggression against Ukraine and illegal occupation of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, the Kremlin continues, with all its aggressive actions against Ukraine, to blatantly disregard international law and fair demands of the entire civilized world.
”Ukraine calls on all international community to urge the occupying power to immediately halt massive violations of the fundamental rights and freedoms in the peninsula and to provide access to international organizations to the temporarily occupied Autonomous Republic of Crimea for permanent monitoring of the situation in the field of human rights; unite efforts for de-occupation of Crimea,” the statement underlines.
As UaPosition reported earlier, Crimean Prosecutor Natalya Poklonskaya issued a decision to suspend the activities of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatars.
A copy of the document was submitted to representatives of the public association.